On This Day, September 2: Superman and Official Detective
Also featured: Gene Autry's Champion.
September 2 Update
This report documents the historical provenance, broadcast scheduling, commercial sponsorship, credited cast, production personnel, alternate circulating titles, and pure narrative synopses for broadcasts transmitting on September 2 across iconic superhero radio serials with dedicated story arc tracking, true-case police procedural crime dramas, and juvenile western horse adventures, Bud Collyer as Superman for Kellogg's Pep in Professor Thorpe's Bathysphere (1940) and Dr. Deutch and the Radium Mine (1941), Craig McDonnell in Official Detective (1947, 1952, 1954), and Gene Autry's Adventures of Champion (1940–1954):
1. Broadcasts
| Title | Network, Airdate & Showtime | Sponsor & Commercial Ads | Credited Cast & Performers | Director, Writers & Crew | Genres | Story Synopsis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Professor Thorpe's Bathysphere (Part 4) with Bud Collyer and Kellogg's" | Mutual (WOR) 1940-09-02 5:15 PM EDST |
Kellogg Company Kellogg's Pep Cereal |
Bud Collyer (Superman) | Joan Alexander & Noa | ["Superhero", "Action", "Adventure", "Superman", "Bud Collyer"] |
Clark Kent dives deep beneath the ocean surface to rescue Professor Thorpe from a sabotaged diving bell trapped in an underwater canyon. |
| "Dr. Deutch and the Radium Mine (Part 1) with Bud Collyer and Kellogg's" | Mutual (WOR) 1941-09-02 5:15 PM EDST |
Kellogg Company Kellogg's Pep Cereal |
Bud Collyer (Clark Kent) | Joan Alexander (Lois) | ["Superhero", "Action", "Adventure", "Superman", "Bud Collyer"] |
Clark Kent and Lois Lane travel to a secluded Canadian mining outpost where a renegade scientist seizes control of a rich pitchblende radium vein. |
| "The Ghost of Black Mountain (Chapter 5) with Gene Autry" | Mutual (WOR) 1949-09-02 5:30 PM EDT |
Sustaining Western Serial |
Gene Autry, Champion | Flying A Production | ["Children", "Western", "Adventure", "Champion", "Gene Autry"] |
Ricky North and Champion scale the jagged cliffs of Black Mountain to corner counterfeiters using smoke projectors to fake a ghostly presence. |
| "In Fear for Life with Craig McDonnell and Mutual" | Mutual (WOR) 1947-09-02 8:30 PM EDT |
Sustaining Police Procedural |
Craig McDonnell (Britt) | Wynn Wright (Writer) | ["Police", "Crime", "Mystery", "Official Detective", "Craig McDonnell"] |
Detective Dan Britt protects a terrified nightclub bookkeeper marked for execution after witnessing an underworld payoff. |
| "Inspector LeRoy Gordon Receives an Official Detective Award" | Mutual (WOR) 1952-09-02 8:00 PM EDT |
Sustaining Police Procedural |
Craig McDonnell, Gordon | Mutual Police Staff | ["Police", "Crime", "Mystery", "Official Detective", "Craig McDonnell"] |
Detective Dan Britt dramatizes a daring waterfront raid before presenting a civic achievement award to a veteran homicide inspector. |
| "The Corpse in the Oriental Rug with Craig McDonnell and Mutual" | Mutual (WOR) 1954-09-02 8:00 PM EDT |
Sustaining Police Procedural |
Craig McDonnell (Britt) | Mutual Police Staff | ["Police", "Crime", "Mystery", "Official Detective", "Craig McDonnell"] |
Detectives trace an antique Persian rug delivered to an auction gallery containing the strangled body of a prominent art dealer. |